Wheel-tire.



C. H. GENTE.

WHEEL TIRE.

L?! is )a APPLICATION 1EILED SEPLZB, 1911. 'T Q* s 1 n a? ig@ tti WHEEL-TIRE.

Speeitlcatien of Letters Iatent.

*.atented Nov. 2d. itt-*2li 53.

Application led September 23, 1311. Serial No. $50,906'.

To all whom t may concern: y

Be it known that L, CHARI as ll. GENTE, a citizen ot' the United States, and a resident ol the city and county ot' Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented Aan improvementin Wheel-Tires, of which the 'ollowing is a specification.

More particularly this invention relates to elastic tires for wheels, and the object is to provide a non-pneumatic elastic tire suit able for use in automobiles and other heavy vehicles in place of the pneumatic tires now in use.

lt is one of the objects of my invention to provide a. tire, the eliiciency of which will not be ailected by ordinary punctures7 which render pneumatic tires useless.

lt is also an object of myvinvention to provide a tire which will greatly overcome the tendenc to slip or skid which is one of the chief angers in the use of present pneumatic tires.

In the drawings: Figure l is a side clevation of part of a wheel provided with my improved tire, with a portion ol' the tire shown in longitudinal sect-ion in a vertical plane through the middle oi' the tire and wheel rim; Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section on the line. m-m of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, but slightly enlarged showing the tire under compression; Fig. 4 is a similar view showing the tire under compression with its tread-portion acting on an uneven surface; and Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 2 on a slightly enlarged scale showing a modification.

2 is the wheel-telly to which the tire is applied. The wheel proper may be of wood or metal and of any construction desired. Surrounding the perimeter of the folly 2 is a metal rirn 3 of channel-shape in crosssection, which may be secured to the telly in any convenient manner, as by the bolts 17. This rim 3 is provided with one or more circular ribs 5 projecting from the bottom of the rim and dividing it into annular compartments. ln tne construction show in Figs. 1-4 a single central annular rib is employed, but in the construction shown in Fig. 5 with a wider tire. intended more particularly for heavy service with trucks, and the like, two ribs are employed.

NThe outer or shoe-portion of the tire consists of an outer tread-portion 13 and a. lower elastic portion 8 which are permanently connected together, with the sides of the elastic portion extended laterally to form elastic flanges which are secured by suitable clamps l0 to the sides of the rim 3. The shoe-portion is provided With encor more internal annular pockets l5 which are inclosed by the web of the elastic portion 8 and so located that they will bc inlinediately adjacent to the ribs 5 with the elastic web 8 between.

The edges of the sides of the rim 8 are preferably provided with upturned rounded llanges 47 which enga-ge recesses in the upturned edges 9 of the elastic flanges and the clamps l0 are preferably annular and ol angular shape to lit about the edges of the elastic flanges and clamp them securely upon the flanged edges 4 of the rim. The clamping rings may be fastened to the sides olf the rim by bolts 1l.

lFhen the tire is under compression, as shown in Fig. 3 the rib 5 acts upon the elastic web of the portion 8 over the pocket l5 and stretches it, while the adjacent elastic portions are forced up into the open spaces in the rim 3. The elastic portion is thus stretched both at the edges of the rim 3 and at the intermediate rib or ribs 5, and a. .greatly increased sustaining power is imparted to the wheel.

The neck of the tread-portion 13 where it joins or merges into the elastic portion 8 is of less width than the annular compartments in the rim so that the movements described will not be prevented by the thrust of the shoe portion upon the rim or clamping ring when the shoe-portion is forced upward.

ln Fig. 4 I have shown the action when the tire is running on an uneven surface as upon a rail. In this case the side which is acted upon by the rail or elevation is forced upward to a much greater extent than the other side and the elasticity of the tire adapts itself to the inequality of the. surface without affecting the perpendicularity of the wheel or jolting the car.

In the preferred form the periphery of the shoe is curved as shown to present two outer points of contact and also a central point of contact with hollows 14 between, andlthese hollows are so placed that the outer contact points of the shoe with the.

lground are wholly outside of the central line between the points of contact of the elastic portion 8 with the sides of the rim 3 and the central rib 5, as is indicated in llt) i beihard and tough at the outer tread porportion must have the necessary hardness and toughness to withstand the wear to.y

which it is subjected in seivice while. the lower portion must have the elasticity necessary to accomplish the results described. The shoe may be made et' one piece ot rubtion and elastic at. the tlanges and web over the pocket i5, or it may be made et two distinct pieces united together .as indicated at 16, in which case the connecting surfaces are preferably formed with complementary projections and recesses as shown.

in commercial practice, l prefer to term the shoe portion 13, ot relatively hard rubber, in a suitable mold and with -the inwardly projecting parts formed with circumferential grooves and projections, such as indicated at 16, for example, and separately mold the transverse elastic rubber portion 8 with complementary circumferential grooves and ribs to fit those ot the inwardly projecting parts of the shoe portion 13, and these two contacting parts then vulcanized together to form an integral structure having a strong union between the parts 8 and 13. rifhe irregular circumferential surface of union between the parts-8 and 13, indicated at 16, secure two important results, both ot which are most vital in a tire of this character. By providing the circumferential grooves and projections, in dicated at 16, I secure a very large increase in the vulcanized surface which unites the two parts 8 and 13 and. thereby provide a union which would be equivalent to approxii mately twice the width of the inwardly pro- 'ecting parts of the shoe portion. Eurther,l y providing this particular character ot union between the parts 8 and 13, it will be seen that in skidding, or tendency to skid, there will be the greatestpossible resistance against the tearing of the shoe portion'13 from the elastic portion 8, as these projections on the two parts which interlock at their-vulcanized union 16, will greatly increase the strength against tearing them apart when subjected to such strains. This particular character of union between the two partsl is lmost important, because, coinmerciallyt is necessary to use a cheaper and harder material in the tread portionl than in the elastic portion 8.

l do not mean to limit my invention, in its bioader'teatures, to the particular con strtction oit the channel-shaped ribbed rim, but I preter to. construct it ot' stamped sheet metal, with therib 5 forincd by a folded poi"- tion of the sheet and with the faces of the rib portion or portions separated to toi-ni an internal space or pocket 7, with which holes 6, extending through the telly communicate. These holes preferably incline forward in the direction of the forward movement of the wheel as is indicated in Fig. l, and the air which enters through these holes and passes into the annular space I in the rib 5 cools the rib and also acts to prevent the rim and entire tire irom becoming over-heated.

l do not claim in this application the provision of the telly with air passages leading into the rim, but l reserve the right to protect the same by a separate application to be filed as a division of this application.

What claim is as follows:

1. As a new article of manufacture, a rubber tire comprising an outer shoe portion of relatively hard rubber having a iiattened tread and a plurality of inwardly directed portions of relatively narrow width to pro vide widely overlianging sides adjacent to the tread, and an inner transverse portion ot' relatively elastic rubber having a vulcanized circumferential union with the narrow inwardly projecting portions of the outer shoe` nently connected together and provided with an annular pocket between them located adjacent to and over the annular rib of the rim, the sides of the lower elastic portion being extended laterally to form elastic flanges secured tothe sides of the rim, and the periphery of the tread portion being of irregular outline having hollows under the central lines betw'een'thc sides of the rim and its central rib with points of Contact in substantial alinement with the central rib and side flanges. c

3. The combination of a wheel rim having two circumferential grooves separated by a radial rib and also having its sides curved outward at their free edges, with a. rubber tire comprising a transverse web or' flexible rubber resting over the central circumferential rib and the. channels ot the rim and having lateral edges projecting radially inbhe? gufi on s i tic fu e5 over the ccumerand .annular rings elasyc e` rubber are to h@ cuzve @fives En estmly 0f which Eventi um@ sel; my hand.

ffm Uil.

f l fr mend l f l l "Wi iesses 

